Nine Résumé Writing Tips

Posted by:    Darlene Duncan CWDP, JSS, CCC, JCTC, JCDC

                   Training Coordinator
 

Some people think they have a résumé to get a job. Your résumés job isn’t to get you a job. Your résumés job is to get you an interview. If your résumé is getting you interviews, it’s doing its job. Below are some tips on writing your résumé.

1.    Target your résumé at the job for which you’re applying. One size fits all doesn’t work in the world of résumés.

2.    Use action verbs to start each bulleted line. Make certain the action verbs you use are in the proper tense. If you’re still at the job you’re describing you will use present tense. If this is a position you no longer have then you’ll use past tense.

3.    Don’t waste white space. This doesn’t mean that you need to use every bit of white space on the page. It does mean that you should have one inch margins, use an easy to read font and make sure the font size is large enough to be easy to read. The sample résumés we use in our workshops are font size 12.

4.    Bold and italicize sparingly. Bold and italicizing are used for emphasis. If you over use them they lose their punch.

5.    List accomplishments and quantify them whenever possible. The world knows that if you waited tables for three years you provided quality customer service. What they don’t know is how much money did you average in upselling on each check? What I mean by that is this, a customer comes in and orders a burger with fries. The fries come with the burger at no extra charge. However, your restaurant offers sweet potato fries in place of the regular fries for an extra dollar. So you ask, “Would you prefer sweet potato fries?” If they go for the sweet potato fries you just brought another dollar into the business. Depending on the establishment you’re working in you could also add to the tab by promoting appetizers, before meal drinks, after meal drinks and dessert. Think about how you can quantify your accomplishments in different jobs you’ve held.

6.    Spelling is a vital part of your résumé. If you worked as a Manager and your résumé says you worked as a Manger, spell check won’t catch the mistake. Why? Because you spelled ‘manger’ correctly and all spell check does is verify the word is spelled correctly. This is why you MUST proofread your résumé. Also, if you have someone whose skill with words you trust, ask them to proofread it for you.

7.    Correct grammar. An English teacher will tell you a résumé is a grammatical nightmare because of all the sentence fragments; however, that’s the nature of the beast. Despite the fact that you’re using sentence fragments, those fragments must make sense. Not only do they have to be understandable, they have to do a good job of selling you as a potential candidate for the job.

8.    The formatting, otherwise referred to as the physical appearance of your résumé must be consistent, make good use of the available space and be pleasing to the eye. A one inch margin all the way around is sufficient white space for the sides. Your font size should never be smaller than 10. Actually, a font size of 12 is better. If you start formatting your dates using two digits for the month and two digits for the year (03/08) then all your dates should be formatted that way. Consistency is crucial to your résumés success.  

9.    A two page résumé is not a crime. As a matter of it’s preferred over a one page résumé that has no white space left on it and the font size has been reduced to 9 so everything can be put on one page. If you have sufficient accomplishments, skills and work experience to justify a second page, then go to a second page. That said, a second page should be at least half full. So if you’ve written your résumé and one or two lines go to a second page, you have to make a decision. Do you have enough relevant information to expand your résumé so that it fills at least half a page on page two? If yes, go for it. If no, then you probably need to do some editing and get back to one page. The information you edit from such a résumé can be incorporated into you cover letter.

In conclusion, remember that your résumé has one job and one job only. It’s a marketing tool that should be designed to get you an interview. If your résumé is getting you interviews, it’s a good résumé. If your résumé isn’t getting you interviews, you need to fire it because it’s not doing its job. The tips above are the basic foundation of a good résumé. It’s up to you to build on that foundation.